Tonight is my "Famous" (in the eyes of my husband) Barbecue Chicken. We are possibly having 5 adults and 2 children at dinner tonight so I went with boneless chicken for convenience. It was on sale for $1.88/lb. Also, this recipe freezes great if there are any leftovers. What makes so different than the rest? Marinating and RED onion.
-boneless, skinless chicken breast (I used about 5lbs because that's how much was in my package and Hubs will bring the rest for lunch tomorrow)
-1 large red onion (mine was .68lb)
-1 bottle of your favorite barbecue sauce (I use Sweet Baby Ray's because it's gluten-free)
Slice onion into rings. Take a container that will fit all your chicken and has a lid. I used a Rubbermaid container like this. Spread some barbecue sauce in the bottom and put half your chicken in. Lay half your onion slices and spread barbecue sauce over chicken and onions. Repeat with rest of chicken and onions so you have two layers.
Put lid on and let marinate in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours, I usually let mine sit for about 4-6 hours,
When ready to cook, preheat grill (don't forget to oil your grates) and cook chicken for about 15-20 minutes, or until no longer pink (this time varies greatly by how large and thick your chicken is). I usually cook the onions for about 10 minutes until they're soft and serve over the chicken.
We will be having this with frozen corn (I froze this last year) and salad. This meal cost me $14.98 (not including salad dressing). Here is my cost broken down. I do prorate it for times I buy an item and use half for one dinner and half for another.
Chicken @ 1.88/lb -$8.48
BBQ Sauce - $1.82
Bag of salad 2/3.28-$1.64
Cucumber-$0.98
Tomatoes-$1.25
Red Onion-$1.01
Total=$14.98
Or just $2.14/person. This is assuming there are no leftovers, but I'm sure there will be at least one serving.
Showing posts with label cooking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cooking. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Saturday, April 16, 2011
April Accountability #4
My diet.
About 6 months before getting pregnant I went gluten-free. I was tired, I had gained about 60 lbs effortlessly and extremely uninterested in anything but laying on the couch. It was suggested that I could have Celiac Sprue disease by my Gastroenterologist so I did a gluten elimination challenge. I felt amazing about two weeks later and decided to have the blood work to check for the antibodies of Celiac. My test came back negative, however, I tainted the results by eliminating gluten for over two weeks. Since I felt amazing, and the only cure to Celiac is to be gluten-free, I decided to forgo repeat testing while eating gluten or a small bowel biopsy.
Then I got pregnant and remained gluten-free until about the 2nd trimester. At this point my stomach was not a happy camper. I sailed through the 1st trimester with no morning sickness or food aversion. Then Thanksgiving hit. While I was nausea free, ever single food made my stomach do somersaults. The only thing my body really seemed to respond to was, yep you guessed it, gluten-filled foods. Bread, pasta, and crackers were staples in my diet. I didn't seem to have a very negative response to it so I kept a gluten diet.
Then Bear was born and there was the stress of the NICU. I ate the free nursing-mother meals, which were gluten filled comfort foods. I lost 15lbs of the baby weight easily (then again Bear weighed 9lb at birth) and the rest have been stuck.
I've lost and regained the same 5lbs for 6 months now. I just figured it was the stress of special needs, and the hospitalizations, the fast food, the comfort eating. However, once things started to calm down I decided to clean up Hubs and my diet. I made homemade wheat bread and we ate salads and sandwiches. And I didn't lose a pound.
In the past two months I've been becoming increasingly more exhausted no matter how much sleep I have. And **TMI WARNING** my monthly period has been coming less and less. Last time was 90 days and I'm already up to 45 days this cycle. I'm guessing as my immune system is regulating it's becoming more and more sensitive to gluten.
Wednesday I had enough. I said farewell to some of my favorite friends and embraced my gluten-free lifestyle.
(all images from google search)
I know there are many gluten-free alternatives but the specialty flours are extremely expensive and most recipes are highly disappointing. Although, I do recommend the Betty Crocker Baking Mixes. I really liked the Chocolate Chip Cookies, however with a stick of butter they are probably pretty unhealthy.
I do think I will invest in some gluten free oats to try to convert a few recipes I have.
So on top of budgeting, driving less, cooking at home and working on my marriage. I have to frugally cook gluten-free.
I do this by
1) Buying very few gluten-free alternatives. My one allowance is pasta. I buy corn past from The Christmas Tree Shoppes for $1.29/bag. I haven't bought it in a while so the price may have changed.
2) I cook like a meat and potatoes kind of girl. I usually make some sort of protein, and a vegetable and starch.
3) I replace pasta with brown rice. Except for tomato sauce (yuck). We have turkey and gravy over rice, chicken and wild rice soup, you get the picture.
4) I do not buy seasonings or instant anything. There is LOTS of hidden gluten so the easiest way to avoid this is to cook at home.
In the past 2 days, I have more energy and am feeling "lighter". We'll see if this lasts.
About 6 months before getting pregnant I went gluten-free. I was tired, I had gained about 60 lbs effortlessly and extremely uninterested in anything but laying on the couch. It was suggested that I could have Celiac Sprue disease by my Gastroenterologist so I did a gluten elimination challenge. I felt amazing about two weeks later and decided to have the blood work to check for the antibodies of Celiac. My test came back negative, however, I tainted the results by eliminating gluten for over two weeks. Since I felt amazing, and the only cure to Celiac is to be gluten-free, I decided to forgo repeat testing while eating gluten or a small bowel biopsy.
Then I got pregnant and remained gluten-free until about the 2nd trimester. At this point my stomach was not a happy camper. I sailed through the 1st trimester with no morning sickness or food aversion. Then Thanksgiving hit. While I was nausea free, ever single food made my stomach do somersaults. The only thing my body really seemed to respond to was, yep you guessed it, gluten-filled foods. Bread, pasta, and crackers were staples in my diet. I didn't seem to have a very negative response to it so I kept a gluten diet.
Then Bear was born and there was the stress of the NICU. I ate the free nursing-mother meals, which were gluten filled comfort foods. I lost 15lbs of the baby weight easily (then again Bear weighed 9lb at birth) and the rest have been stuck.
I've lost and regained the same 5lbs for 6 months now. I just figured it was the stress of special needs, and the hospitalizations, the fast food, the comfort eating. However, once things started to calm down I decided to clean up Hubs and my diet. I made homemade wheat bread and we ate salads and sandwiches. And I didn't lose a pound.
In the past two months I've been becoming increasingly more exhausted no matter how much sleep I have. And **TMI WARNING** my monthly period has been coming less and less. Last time was 90 days and I'm already up to 45 days this cycle. I'm guessing as my immune system is regulating it's becoming more and more sensitive to gluten.
Wednesday I had enough. I said farewell to some of my favorite friends and embraced my gluten-free lifestyle.
(all images from google search)
I know there are many gluten-free alternatives but the specialty flours are extremely expensive and most recipes are highly disappointing. Although, I do recommend the Betty Crocker Baking Mixes. I really liked the Chocolate Chip Cookies, however with a stick of butter they are probably pretty unhealthy.
I do think I will invest in some gluten free oats to try to convert a few recipes I have.
So on top of budgeting, driving less, cooking at home and working on my marriage. I have to frugally cook gluten-free.
I do this by
1) Buying very few gluten-free alternatives. My one allowance is pasta. I buy corn past from The Christmas Tree Shoppes for $1.29/bag. I haven't bought it in a while so the price may have changed.
2) I cook like a meat and potatoes kind of girl. I usually make some sort of protein, and a vegetable and starch.
3) I replace pasta with brown rice. Except for tomato sauce (yuck). We have turkey and gravy over rice, chicken and wild rice soup, you get the picture.
4) I do not buy seasonings or instant anything. There is LOTS of hidden gluten so the easiest way to avoid this is to cook at home.
In the past 2 days, I have more energy and am feeling "lighter". We'll see if this lasts.
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Cooking Success and Failure Week 2
Let's see how we did this week!
Saturday April 9
Lunch: we had a fun visit down to Amish country and picked up some lunch meat at a bulk food store. We had a picnic on the front porch of a furniture store (don't worry we stopped in to buy something first) with some homemade bread from home and snacks.
Dinner: I wasn't very hungry so Hubs had leftovers from salisbury steak night.
Sunday April 10
Lunch: Sandwiches
Dinner: hot dogs, macaroni salad
Monday April 11
Lunch: Sandwiches
Dinner: Pizza Hut. We got home so late from the hospital and were wiped. Bear was melting down and by the time we got him settled and in bed it was so late and we were so hungry.
Tuesday April 12
Lunch: Sandwiches or Pizza
Dinner: Applebee's. I made a chicken crockpot dish. It smelled revolting and looked even worse. So we decided to go out (Yes twice in one week, but I felt it was warranted)
Wednesday April 13
Lunch: I picked up salad for lunch because I started Gluten Free (GF). Hubs had sandwiches
Dinner: Caesar salad, hot dogs (I had mine without a roll), frozen canteloupe and canned peaches
Thursday April 14
Lunch: Leftover salad or sandwiches
Dinner: Pancakes (I found a box of GF mix someone gave me) and turkey breakfast sausage.
Friday April 15
Lunch: Au Bon Pain for me, it was the only thing at the hospital and I was unable to bring anything from home, Hubs had Wendy's, he was on the road for work
Dinner: Jimmy John's, I had Cornish Hens out but Hubs said he really wanted sandwiches. I know you're all thinking, but didn't she just go GF? Jimmy John's offers an Unwich. It's they're sandwich (same amount of meat and condiments, etc) all wrapped up in very large lettuce leaves. It was fantastic, and the Beach Club (Turkey and Avocado) was only 200 calories. We also had potato chips.
I know it seems like we went out an awful lot, and we did. However, this has been one of THOSE weeks so the fact that we even made it through is success. I wish I could have cooked more, but days like yesterday (driving 40 minutes by myself with Bear at naptime, walking the 20 minute walk to the doctor's office, then back to the car, then back to the doctor's office, then back to the car, and then the 40 min drive home in traffic which became an hour) it took all my energy just to survive. So tough luck. Next week is a little calmer, however it ends in Easter. Although in our house holidays=leftovers!!! and less cooking afterwards.
I ended up having to purchase romaine lettuce and 2 packs hot dog rolls and macaroni salad and potato chips.
And as a follow up, that GF pancake/waffle mix was absolutely HORRID. Ruined the whole pancake experience. I thought with enough syrup it would mask the flavor. I was wrong, very wrong.
Saturday April 9
Lunch: we had a fun visit down to Amish country and picked up some lunch meat at a bulk food store. We had a picnic on the front porch of a furniture store (don't worry we stopped in to buy something first) with some homemade bread from home and snacks.
Dinner: I wasn't very hungry so Hubs had leftovers from salisbury steak night.
Sunday April 10
Lunch: Sandwiches
Dinner: hot dogs, macaroni salad
Monday April 11
Lunch: Sandwiches
Dinner: Pizza Hut. We got home so late from the hospital and were wiped. Bear was melting down and by the time we got him settled and in bed it was so late and we were so hungry.
Tuesday April 12
Lunch: Sandwiches or Pizza
Dinner: Applebee's. I made a chicken crockpot dish. It smelled revolting and looked even worse. So we decided to go out (Yes twice in one week, but I felt it was warranted)
Wednesday April 13
Lunch: I picked up salad for lunch because I started Gluten Free (GF). Hubs had sandwiches
Dinner: Caesar salad, hot dogs (I had mine without a roll), frozen canteloupe and canned peaches
Thursday April 14
Lunch: Leftover salad or sandwiches
Dinner: Pancakes (I found a box of GF mix someone gave me) and turkey breakfast sausage.
Friday April 15
Lunch: Au Bon Pain for me, it was the only thing at the hospital and I was unable to bring anything from home, Hubs had Wendy's, he was on the road for work
Dinner: Jimmy John's, I had Cornish Hens out but Hubs said he really wanted sandwiches. I know you're all thinking, but didn't she just go GF? Jimmy John's offers an Unwich. It's they're sandwich (same amount of meat and condiments, etc) all wrapped up in very large lettuce leaves. It was fantastic, and the Beach Club (Turkey and Avocado) was only 200 calories. We also had potato chips.
I know it seems like we went out an awful lot, and we did. However, this has been one of THOSE weeks so the fact that we even made it through is success. I wish I could have cooked more, but days like yesterday (driving 40 minutes by myself with Bear at naptime, walking the 20 minute walk to the doctor's office, then back to the car, then back to the doctor's office, then back to the car, and then the 40 min drive home in traffic which became an hour) it took all my energy just to survive. So tough luck. Next week is a little calmer, however it ends in Easter. Although in our house holidays=leftovers!!! and less cooking afterwards.
I ended up having to purchase romaine lettuce and 2 packs hot dog rolls and macaroni salad and potato chips.
And as a follow up, that GF pancake/waffle mix was absolutely HORRID. Ruined the whole pancake experience. I thought with enough syrup it would mask the flavor. I was wrong, very wrong.
Saturday, April 2, 2011
April Accountability #1
My first accountability goal for April is to cook at home 6 days a week. Sundays is a day for the Lord and for our Christian community.
To us this includes fellowship with our friends and generally after church we either go to lunch as a family or with another family. Sometimes we have carry-ins after church.
Lately church has poorly coincided with Bear's naps. However, he has recently dropped from 2 to 1 nap a day. He seems to sleep better with 1 long nap versus 2 shorter naps. So while we may not be there very long we do make an effort to go.
Also, Hubs parents will be out helping with some landscaping renovations and I know we will go out to eat at least once with them.
And then, we are so grateful, a woman from church has so graciously offered to babysit Bear for us. So Hubs and I will probably have an afternoon date one weekend and I'm sure that will include a lunch (because I don't see it warming up enough for a picnic) out.
On top of that, the end of April is Easter and my family will be visiting. So I've made a realistic goal and included 4 days of eating out.
I started Thursday night with making a slow cooker pot roast. It was one of those last minute lucky meals. The roast was still frozen, I had 3 potatoes left, and a bag of onions. I threw it together, added some seasoning and prayed it would be edible. It actually turned out great and Hubs and I both have lunch for April 1.
So 1 meal down, only 54 to go (not including breakfast, I generally don't eat anything and Hubs has oatmeal until it runs out).
To us this includes fellowship with our friends and generally after church we either go to lunch as a family or with another family. Sometimes we have carry-ins after church.
Lately church has poorly coincided with Bear's naps. However, he has recently dropped from 2 to 1 nap a day. He seems to sleep better with 1 long nap versus 2 shorter naps. So while we may not be there very long we do make an effort to go.
Also, Hubs parents will be out helping with some landscaping renovations and I know we will go out to eat at least once with them.
And then, we are so grateful, a woman from church has so graciously offered to babysit Bear for us. So Hubs and I will probably have an afternoon date one weekend and I'm sure that will include a lunch (because I don't see it warming up enough for a picnic) out.
On top of that, the end of April is Easter and my family will be visiting. So I've made a realistic goal and included 4 days of eating out.
I started Thursday night with making a slow cooker pot roast. It was one of those last minute lucky meals. The roast was still frozen, I had 3 potatoes left, and a bag of onions. I threw it together, added some seasoning and prayed it would be edible. It actually turned out great and Hubs and I both have lunch for April 1.
So 1 meal down, only 54 to go (not including breakfast, I generally don't eat anything and Hubs has oatmeal until it runs out).
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